What Baby's Bedtime Looks Like Around the World

These stats show all sleep schedules are not created equal.

PUBLISHED ON 03/14/2016

Every parent’s bedtime ritual—and struggle—is unique, without a doubt. But baby sleep challenges are certainly universal. As a part of its new Tonight We Sleep campaign, Johnson’s took a look at how babies are getting shuteye across the globe. And the cultural differences are pretty, well, eye-opening.

When Are Babies Going To Bed?

Here in the U.S., the average bedtime is 8:52 p.m. for infants and toddlers. But in the Middle East, babies are barely winding down by then, clocking average bedtimes of 10:45 p.m. Here’s how various countries and regions stack up:

Where Are Babies Sleeping?

Pinterest may have you on a nesting-fueled nursery-decorating frenzie, but most babies around the world aren’t sleeping in a nursery at all. India in particular shows dangerously high rates of co-sleeping, which the AAP advises against due to SIDS risk.

Brazil: 36 percent fall asleep in their own room, 60 percent in their parents’ room and 25 percent in their parents’ bedChina: 5 percent fall asleep in their own room, 89 percent in their parents’ room and 68 percent in their parents’ bedIndia: 5 percent fall asleep in their own room, 88 percent in their parents’ room and 73 percent in their parents’ bedPhilippines: 7 percent fall asleep in their own room, 87 percent in their parents’ room and 65 percent in their parents’ bedUnited Kingdom: 64 percent fall asleep in their own room, 26 percent in their parents’ room and 5 percent in their parents’ bedUnited States: 57 percent fall asleep in their own room, 22 percent in their parents’ room and 15 percent in their parents’ bedThe Middle East: 8 percent fall asleep in their own room, 87 percent in their parents’ room, and 40 percent in their parents’ bed

How Frequently Are Babies Waking Up?

Nobody’s figured out how to get baby to sleep through the night. Across the board, babies are waking up for at least one 20 to 40 minute session per night. Here’s the breakdown:

In spite of their differences, moms across the world have one major sleep tool in common: their voices. Johnson's found more often than not, mothers are coaxing, humming or singing their babies to sleep.